Blanking and piercing device



Jan. 10, 1950 URQUHART 2,494,018

BLANKING AND PIERCING DEVICE Filed Jan. 8, 1944 I A 29 5o 28 28a ARCH/5440 M (/AQ H/LQZ I nvcutor Gttorncg.

Patented Jan. 10, 1950 BLANKING AND rmacme DEVICE Archibald M. Urquhart, LosAngeles, Calif., as-

signor to Douglas Aircraft Company, Inc.,

Santa Monica, ware Califl, a corporation of Dela- Application mm, s, 1944, Serial No. 517,600 8 Claims (01.164-118) My invention relates to an improvement in means for performing operations on sheet metal, which operations include the piercing or punching of holes in the sheet metal. It will be understood that the invention may be used in a similar manner on other sheet material such as plastics, composition, paper, or cardboard, and felt, etc.

It is an object of the invention to provide means whereby relatively small numbers of punched or pierced metal parts may be quickly and economically formed. Punched and formed met l parts in large quantities may be made at minimum cost by use of the standard metal punching and forming processes. Where the number of parts to be made is quite large, the cost of the expensive dies and punches is absorbed, but in many industries there may be found a requirement for a relatively small number of parts not warranting the cost of manufacture of expensive steel punches and dies. In comparison to the foregoing, my invention provides a means for economically producing small numbers of parts from sheet material wherein the holes are pierced in the sheet simultaneously with other operations upon the sheet, such, for example, as blanking the sheet to a desired peripheral configuration separately from or in conjunction with bending or forming op.- erations. The cooperating parts of the device are simple and may be made rapidly and inexpensively as compared to the manufacture of standard dies and punches. In addition to this, the invention includes cooperating parts which contribute to economy and minimizing of equipment required. u j

It is an object of the invention to P .Qvi de a cooperating punch and die for sheet material for blanking the sheet, the die having in its central cavity or opening punch or piercing members which cooperate with relatively small openings in the punch.

A further object of the invention is to provide a punch and die combination of the character set forth in the preceding paragraph and means for supporting the punch so that the slugs resulting from the piercing operation may be readily disposed of or removed. v I

A further object of the invention is to provide a support for a punch or die parthavingsmall apertures through which the slugs from piercing operations pass, this support having a plurality of projections placed so as to define spaces or channels, the outer [ends ofthese projections being surfaced so as to define a-support against which the punch or die part is disposed durln g the use thereof in a punch press. The slugsfrom the piercing operation drop into the spaces between the projections of the support and may be readily removed therefrom by an air blast.

A further object of the invention is to provide a support of the character described in the foregoing wherein the projecting members comprise removable posts, this making it possible to remove one or more of the posts and thereby provideaslug receiving space under any partof the punch or die part. I g

Further objects and advantages of the inventlon will be brought out in the following part of the specification. r

Referring to the drawing which is for illustrative purposes only,

Fig. 1 is a sectional view showing a preferred form of my invention.

Fig. 2 is a plan view, to reduced scale, showing the punch and supporting member of Fig. 1.

, Fig. 3 is a view, to reduced scale, looking up ward toward the die and upper supporting plate shown in Fig. l.

Fig. 4 is a view of the metal part produced by thedevice shown in the preceding figures.

To show the environment in which the invention is used, I have in Fig. 1 shown the bed plate [0 and the head I l of a punch press. On the bed or'table Ill there is a supporting member l2 for a punch member 13. To cooperate with-the sup-. porting member I2, I provide a cooperating plate M which supports a die member l5. In accordance with customary practice, interengaging guides l 6 and I! are provided between the members l2 and'M.

The die member [5 includes a backing plate 8. to which a die 19 is secured by means of rivets 20; The die member [5 is positioned on the supportingplate M by means of dowel pins ill and may be held in place by clamps 22.

The punch member l3 comprises a backing plate 23 and a punch 24 secured to its upper face. The punch member I3 is positioned on the supporting member l2 by dowel pins 25 which project upwardly from the supporting member i2, as shown in Fig. 2. The supporting member l2 comprises a plate 26 and a plurality of projections or posts 21, which are preferably removably secured for a'purpose which will be later described. The projecting members 21 are truncated and are spaced so as to define under the punch member lispaces-or channels 28 which extend from Side to side; and front to rear. The projecting members 21 are'shown with downwardly projecting'stems 29'which are frictionally held in openings 30in the plate 26.

The punch portion 24 has a peripheral cutting or shearing edge 3! corresponding to the outline of the part which is to be blanked from sheet stock. In Fig. 4 I show a part 32 which has been punched from sheet material by use of the punch and die shown in Figs. 1 to 3. Its outline corresponds, to the outline of the punch portion 24,

and it has small openings 33 which are pierced therein simultaneously with the blanking oper.-.

ation. The piercing punches 34 for piercing the metal or sheet stock so as to produce the openany attention to the cutting or piercing parts.

ings 33 are mounted in thebacking plate l8 of the die member l5 so as to project downwardlyin proper position within the cavity or opening'35 of the die. To cooperate with the piercing punches 34, openings 36 are formed in the punch member l3 so as to extend from the upper face of the punch portion 24 to the lower face of the backing plate 23. It will be noted that the openings 36 are so placed that the lower ends thereofv communicate with spaces or channels 28 between the projections or posts 27, specifically indicated at 28a and 28b. V

Stripping means are applied to both the punch member I 3 and the die member I 5, these stripping means comprising bodies of rubber 31 and 38 cemented to the upper and lower faces of the backing plates 23 and I8.

The die set consisting of the supporting members I 2 and may be used with any piercing punch and die set made to fit the same, If possible, the lower member I3 is placed upon the upper ends of the posts 21 in such position that the openings 36 will communicate with spaces or channels 28, but, if this is not possible, one or more of the posts 21 may be removed as may be necessary to remove obstructions from beneath the openings 36.

Inthe operation of the invention,.the sheet stock is placed on the punch member 24 and the cooperating die member is then lowered so that the cutting edge 3| of the punch portion 24 and the cutting edge 40 of the die will cut out the I claim as my invention:

.1. As a new article of manufacture, a slug handler for the apertured punch unit of a punch press, comprising: a plate adapted to be removably and interchangeabl positioned on the upper face of the bed or the press and including a plurality of sockets arranged in mutually spaced relationship transversely and longitudinally of the plate, to define intercommunicating longitudinally socket to provide a plurality of receptacles bepart to the desired configuration, and the piercing punches 34 will pass on through the sheet material into the openings 36, removing slugs which will drop into the spaces or channels 28, from which they may be readily removed by a blast of compressed air from a nozzle 42 which is shown attached to an air hose 43. It will be noted that the lower portion of the opening 33, for example-the portion 36a thereof in the plate l3is flared at a relatively wide angle to permit a free discharge of slugs from the punch I3 into the spaces 28 between the posts 21.

I A further feature of the invention is in the simple piercing pin 34. The punch end 34a is cylindrical and is of the same diameter as the body 34b which is knurled so that pressure will be required to force it into the receiving opening in the plate I8. The shank 34 between the cylindrical end 34a and the body 34b is tapered at an angle of substantially 6 to the axis of the piercing pin 34. It will be seen that the piercing pin 34 may be quickly and economically formed from bar steel of standard size by use of simple lathe machining operations. The pins 34 areef fectively secured in place by staking the bodies 34b thereof in the openings of the plate l8.

The number of parts possible to produce through use of the invention, without tooling rework, depends upon the materials being run and the materials from which the punch and die is made. In the aircraft industry for operation on thin stainless steel, aluminum and magnesium tween groups of adjacent pegs; the outer ends of said heads being so surfaced as to frictionally engage the under surface of said punch member and position said apertures over any number and location of the channels between the pegs to enable discharge of slugs of varying sizes through said apertures into said receptacles and to provide a pathway for a slug-removing instrumentality between said pegs to said slugs in said receptacles; whereby to enable unimpeded discharge of slugs downwardly through said apertures thereby to continuously maintain said apertures clear of slugs, and, on operation of said slug-removing instrumentality, to clear the punch unit and press of said slugs.

2. As a new article of manufacture. a slug handler for the apertured punch unit of a punch press, comprising: a plate adapted to be removably and interchangeably positioned on the upper face of the bed of the press and including a plurality of sockets arranged in mutually spaced relationship transversely and longitudinally of the plate, to define inter-communicating longitudinally and transversely extending channels between said sockets; each socket normally containing a peg having a cylindrical shank loosely mounted therein and a downwardly flared head defining with said shank a shoulder supporting a said peg in said socket to provide a plurality of receptacles between groups of adjacent pegs; the outer ends of said heads being so surfaced as to frictionally engage the under surface of said punch member and position said apertures over any number and location of the channels between the pegs to enable discharge of slugs of varying sizes through said apertures into said receptacles and to provide a pathway for a slug-removing instrumentality between said pegs to said slugs in said receptacles, said shanks of said pegs being selectively manually removable from said looselyfitted positions in said sockets in predetermined locations on said plate, whereby to provide a predetermined size of open receptacles under a selected part of said punch for slugs of varying size and to enable replacement of damaged-top pegs with smooth-top pegs so as to locally resurface the supporting surface without replacing '.the entire punch-supporting unit.

3. A a new article of manufacture, a slug handler for the apertured punch unit of a punch press, comprising: a plate adapted to be removably and interchangeably positioned on the upper face of the bed of the press and including a plurality of sockets arranged in mutually spaced relationship transversely and longitudinally of the plate, to define intercommunicating longitudinally and transversely extending channels between said socket; each socket normally containing a peg having a cylindrical shank loosely mounted therein and a downwardly flared head defining with said shank a shoulder supporting said peg in said socket to provide a plurality of receptacles between groups of adjacent pegs; the outer ends of said heads being so surfaced as to frictionally engage the under surface of said punch member and position said apertures over any number and location of the channels between the pegs to enable discharge of slugs of varying sizes through said apertures into said receptacles and to provide a pathway for a slugremoving instrumentality between said pegs to said slugs in said receptacles; the flare of said heads being sufficiently wide angled from top to bottom to define a wide-mouthed receptacle-like space under each of said apertures, whereby to enable free-falling passage of relatively large slugs from the lower ends of said apertures into said slug-handler despite relatively close spacing of said pegs.

4. As a new article of manufacture, a slug handling unit for the apertured punch die member of a punch press, comprising: a die supporting plate having at least one slug-discharging aperture disposed coaxially under a corresponding punch-aperture of said die member; the walls of said slug-discharging aperture being flared downwardly and outwardly; a second plate adapted to underlie said first plate and to be positioned on the bed of the press; a plurality of sockets in said second plate substantially uniformly distributed throughout the entire area thereof; and pegs of uniform length normally mounted in all of said sockets to provide an interrupted but level supporting surface above the surface of said plate and to provide a plurality of interconnected slug receiving receptacles; the lower end of said flared aperture being substantially wider than the tops of said pegs whereby to provide adequate space for passage of slugs from said die member to one or more of said receptacles regardless of the location of said flared aperture with respect to any of said pegs.

5. A device as claimed in claim 4 in which the spacing between said pegs is approximately equal to the maximum lateral dimension of said pegs.

6. A device as claimed in claim 4 in which said pegs are provided with substantially conical heads flared downwardly and the spacing between said heads at the surface of said second plate is no greater than the maximum lateral dimension of said heads.

7. As a new article of manufacture, a slug receiver comprising: a flat plate adapted to underlie a die supporting plate and to be positioned on the bed of a punch press; a plurality of sockets in said flat plate substantially uniformly distributed throughout the entire area thereof; and pegs normally mounted in all of said sockets and extending to a uniform height above said plate to provide an interrupted but level supporting surface above the surface of said plate and to provide a plurality of interconnected slug receiving receptacles; the spacing between said pegs being approximately equal to the maximum lateral dimensions of said pegs.

8. A device as claimed in claim 7 in which the projecting portions of said pegs are formed as downwardly flaring substantially conical heads; the spacing between said heads at the surface of said flat plate being no greater than the maximum lateral dimension of said heads.

ARCHIBALD M. URQUHART.

REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the file of this patent:

UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 481,574 Long Aug. 30, 1892 625,789 Macbeth May 30, 1899 928,256 Grissom July 20, 1909 1,683,501 Tobeler Sept. 4, 1928 1,834,918 Altvater Dec. 8, 1931 1,890,715 Altvater Dec. 13, 1932 1,959,602 Stanbon May 22, 1934 1,990,932 Deubel Feb. 12, 1935 2,111,156 Schneider et a1. Mar. 15, 1938 2,201,582 Jerichow May 21, 1940 2,202,809 Altvater June 4, 1940 2,338,982 Tauser Jan. 11, 1944 2,364,574 Wales Dec. 5, 1944 FOREIGN PATENTS Number Country Date 640,303 France Mar. 24, 1928 

